1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to battery holding structures and, more specifically, to a battery holding structure for holding a battery in an electronic timepiece.
2. Background Information
Conventionally, in an electronic timepiece of a digital display type or an analog display type, a battery is used as a drive source. Conventionally, as a method of attaching a battery to a timepiece main body, the battery is integrated to the timepiece main body and thereafter, the battery is held by using a separate member for holding the battery such as a battery holder.
FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 show a battery holding structure of a conventional electronic timepiece using a battery holder. FIG. 6 is a plane view of a periphery of a battery holding structure, and FIG. 7 is a front sectional view along a line D—D in FIG. 6 and the same notations are attached to the same portions.
In FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, numeral 401 designates a battery, numeral 402 designates a battery frame made of resin having an opening portion having a diameter slightly larger than that of the battery 401, numeral 403 designates a battery holder made of a metal constituted by a member separate from that of the battery frame 402, numeral 404 designates an eaves portion integrally formed with the battery frame 402, and numeral 405 designates a positive electrode terminal. When the battery 401 is attached to inside of the battery frame 402, the battery 401 is attached to inside the battery frame 402, the battery 401 is contained in the opening portion of the battery frame 402 to dispose on a lower side of the eaves portion 404 and, thereafter, the battery holder 403 is attached to the battery frame 402 from an upper side of the battery 401. By this construction, a positional shift of the battery 401 in a plane direction is prevented by the battery frame 402. Furthermore, since the battery 401 is sandwiched by the battery frame 402, the battery holder 403 and teh eaves portion 404, a positional shift in a sectional direction and detachment of the battery 401 are prevented. Further, the battery 401 is also held in a state of being brought into electrical contact with the positive electrode terminal 405 and a negative electrode terminal (not illustrated).
As described above, by using the battery holder 403, the battery 401 can be held.
However, according to the above-described conventional battery holding structure, in order to prevent the battery 401 from moving in the sectional direction, the battery holder 403 must be a part separate from the battery frame 402, thereby increasing number of integrating steps and resulting in a complicated and expensive battery holding structure. Further, another problem is that a thickness of the electronic timepiece is increased since the battery holder 403 is arranged to overlap the battery 401.
It is an object of the invention to provide a battery holding structure of an electronic timepiece which is inexpensive to manufacture and has a simple constitution. Further, it is another object of the invention to provide a battery holding structure which allows the thickness of an electronic timepiece to be reduced. Further, it is another object of the invention to provide a battery holding structure capable of holding a battery firmly such that the battery is not positionally shifted even when an electronic timepiece is dropped.